What the documents do insist on is that “each deceased person be covered with a shroud or body bag, which will remain intact with the deceased person.

“The shrouding may be of plastic material. Body bags and shrouds must be B.C. Coroners Service approved,” documents said.

Further, contractors must ensure bodies are “clearly identified by a tag (i.e. toe tag or arm bracelet) that remains intact during transit and storage, and cannot be destroyed by water or other environmental elements.”

For scenes where there are multiple dead people, the government pays on a two-for-one basis.

The hourly rate is $25 but increases if the deceased weighs more than 250 pounds.

If a body must be refrigerated, the government pays $25 per day.

Should a body need to be transported in a sealed, leak-proof container – or “homicide tank” – the government pays another $15 per day.

Contractors must remove or conceal company names, logos and other identifying markings on vehicles, uniforms or body bags and not suggest they are employees of the coroners service.

To give contract bidders an idea of the work involved, each contract description lists the number of decedents – or “units” – for a previous 12-month period.